


Broken Symphony

by Irish_coffee



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: Blood, Edison bashing, F/F, F/M, London, Messy Playlist, New York City, Old City Sanctuary, Oxford, Prohibition, Self-Harm, WW2, drunk magnus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-20
Updated: 2017-12-09
Packaged: 2019-02-04 14:03:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12772602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Irish_coffee/pseuds/Irish_coffee
Summary: My contribution to the Ten Songs Challenge... I know, I'm late.I am slightly ashamed at how weird and messy my Spotify playlist is.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I just wrote this, I didn't proofread anything, as specified in the rules of this little challenge. For those who don't know what the challenge is about: The trick is to open your playlist, put it on shuffle mode, and write a piece for each song that plays. You can't skip a song, can't put it on pause, and you have to move on when the song ends and another begins (I know, it sounds awful... Because it IS).  
> I was struggling to write an essay and I thought this exercise might help my brain.  
> So here goes nothing. For some reason, the 5% of French songs I have in my playlist all came out for this... They are all available on Spotify, and there's a slight chance you might like them :).

**Viola Martinsson – Made of**

The sun had not risen yet when James started the engine. Her bag was keeping her legs warm in the midnight air. She was only bringing what she needed for a few weeks, what she couldn’t bring herself to buy in Old City. The rest of her belongings would follow her promptly, James would make sure of that. She was happy to leave and build a new life out there, in the new world. Nikola Tesla’s continent. Yet, she was torn. She looked at the old buildings passing the car, felt the old cobblestones shaking her. It was all part of her. A painful breathing, living organ feeding on her inner tissues. Still, London was what she was made of.

**Gael Faye – Paris Métèque**

It had changed a lot since he had last lived there in a small room under Paris’ sky. German uniforms were everywhere. He had seen a truck full of Jewish children leaving the street where he was hiding that morning, and Helen’s hand had gripped his arm as he changed into the beast he was. He had turned to her. She was crying. Powerless. He remembered the slow mornings at the café, the taste of French pastries on his tongue, long walks at night among joyous people. How he wished Helen could have shared that with him back then.

**Hidden Citizens – Silent Running (Epic Trailer Version)**

She appeared to him in dreams. Not that he was a psychic or anything. Nothing of that. He was very good at reading signs. He could see the anguish in her fierce eyes, the silent fear between her friendly lines of her letters, the way she bit her tongue to keep from screaming for help. His mind would let it all out whenever he closed his eyes for a nap. After a century, he had learnt to predict when exactly she needed him. Anyone really, but he would flatter himself thinking she needed her Oxford friend. And he would run back to her, always.

**Mickey 3D – Des fleurs dans les cheveux**

He jumped slightly when he heard her voice. First, he wasn’t used to hearing a female voice on Oxford benches. And she had a clear, determined voice and a dignified accent. He stammered. Of course she could sit next to him. Her gentle, amused smile lit a spark somewhere in his guts. She could barely restrain herself from correcting the professor that day, but she only gripped the desk, shook her head slightly. He could still hear the curses going on in her head. She was the best student in the room, and by far the most beautiful flower in the gardens.

**Alice Merton – No roots**

“Will you be okay, darling?” Helen nodded with a smile, taking James’ hand in hers. She could not tell him. She could not let him know she was used to running from one country to another, meeting young people she would eventually see age and die in her care. Her most prized possessions were her memories. So she would assume a new name, burn her practical, 21st century clothes, and run again, run for a hundred years before she could be herself again.

 

**Faul & Wad Ad – Changes**

Sometimes, Nikola felt way older than Helen Magnus. He was an old antic from times forgotten, but she moved gracefully into each new year, moving with her time, looking fashionable and smart. He was an old grumpy vampire, sitting in a corner while the children enjoyed themselves, blasting their hateful music that he thought Helen would have banished from her home. Instead, she was undulating to the beat of the tune, swaying on impossibly high heels, clad in her impossibly tight dress. Her hips were driving him mad. He was entranced with the sight of her dancing so delightfully. She moved to Henry’s side, bumping her hip to his and he shook his head but followed her lead anyway. It seemed no one could resist her when she was in this playful mood. Not even the old-fashioned Nikola, who refilled his glass of wine and decided he would have the last dance, though probably not on any piece of electro-garbage. They still had her old gramophone and plenty of Debussy.

**The Nagual Orchestra – Nikola Tesla**

He was the most infuriating man she had ever known. She reflected. She had never gone through such longs Russian Mountains with anyone. Yet, unstable as he was, he was the most stable element in her life. He was an inspiration to her, the alternative current of energy flowing through her brain. He never changed much, not even after shaving that mustache off. She had never changed much either, despite the changing color of her hair. He would come nagging at her, with his crazy and destructive ideas, and she would reason with him, use him to her advantage while providing him with enough funds for him not to get bored. That’s how they both remained sane through the hundred and plus years they had lived so far: a couch in a far corner of a library, red wine, deep conversations and light flirtatious banter.

**Shania Twain – Man! I feel like a woman**

It all felt like a liberation. The soft cotton of the shirt she had shamelessly stolen from Nikola felt heavenly against her skin, and she found she felt she could move and breathe with more ease in men’s clothes. She had tied her curls in a tight bun that she was hiding under a top hat, and while a look in the full-length mirror had reflected a very manly image to her, she felt very womanly. Even with these soft, woman’s lips caressing hers and the taste of absinth on her tongue, she felt like she had revealed yet a more inflamed side of her womanhood.  


**Bigflo & Oli – Alors Alors**

“I miss him too you know”.

How could she be so easy to read? She wondered. It was easy. James didn’t even need his gift of deduction to know Helen was hoping for a sign that Nikola was well. They had never told him he could never ever have any contact with them. It had been four years now. Four very long years since they had orchestrated Nikola’s death. And she was still waiting for the postman every morning, gazing at the sky as if waiting for a pigeon to bring news from their old friend. And James could not bring himself to tell her they would most likely never see their friend again, nor hear from him. Sometimes, he thought it’d be better if Nikola was truly dead and buried. It would feel less like a betrayal to their sweet Helen.  


**Raving George – You’re mine**

If she thought in a very logical way about her relationship with Nikola, she was forced to admit they belonged together. She wasn’t exactly… His. Still, sometimes, in the dead of night, when he would bid her goodnight on her doorstep, with that side smile she knew was only for her, she couldn’t stop herself from thinking of him as hers. And lately, she thought this as he reverently worshipped inches after inches of skin as he undressed her. He was hers when his hand played with the hair at the back of her neck, hers when he whispered her name, as if making sure she was still herself and conscious of their sinking into a more complex relationship. Hers when he caressed her sides and tasted wine on the tip of her tongue. Hers when he shivers against her hot breath in his neck.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I actually liked my first experience at this. The challenge is hard when your playlist is as... let's say varied as mine, but it makes it even more enjoyable. I'm amazed that none of my VERY guilty pleasures didn't not come out for this round. I might do this regularly. Sorry not sorry.  
> This chapters contains mentions of blood, self-harm and drunkenness. So if any of those things are triggers to you, don't read <3 .

**The Lovin’ Spoonful – Daydream**

Nikola Tesla was not especially known as the kind of guy who would sleep at night. Yet, he needed his daily nap. It was not really a nap, to be fair. He would recline in his armchair, glue his palms together in front of him, close his eyes and get lost in his thoughts. He would not let anyone see him in those moment. All considered, maybe he did sleep, for he did find a steaming cup of coffee that day, waiting on his desk for him to wake up.

**Robert Schumann – Vanitas Vanitatum**

His fingers grazed the surface of the monkey’s skull on the side of Helen’s desk. It was a weird concept to grasp. Death. Of course, he had been sick enough, during his childhood, to give it serious thoughts. Still, he had killed people since then. He turned the skull in his hands, caressing it as a treasure. Would his own skull be so white after a few years of decomposition? Oh… Could he ask Helen to preserve his brain in formaldehyde? It would certainly be pretty, sitting on her nightstand. He grinned. Maybe she’d find a way to make him live again…The first brain transplant ever, performed by the only true genius physician he would trust. Considering his dead spirit could still trust.

**She & Him – We’ll meet again **

It was exciting. Parting, and not knowing in what circumstances they would be reunited. Fate never disappointed him. Would she be the one in need? Or himself? One of the others? What would she be wearing? That was, somehow thrilling. And he did need the thrill amidst the sadness of it all, during those long years without her.

**Jonas Blue – Fast Car**

He could see just how hard a day it had been for Helen. The fact that she had taken her stilettos off was enough of a clue.

“Helen, Helen.” That got her attention.  
She shot him a suspicious look. Why did she always think he was entering her office dragging a trail of fresh issues in his wake?

“I’ve got a plan.” At that, she rolled her eyes.

“Forget about it then.” She advised.

He smiled.

“Oh but you’re gonna like it. Let’s get away. You, I and a car. Let’s drive straight to nowhere in particular. It would be like an adventure.”

She huffed.

“If you drive straight from the gate onwards, you’ll fall into the river in about twenty seconds, depending on your speed. I’ll pass.”

He pouted.

“Where’s your fun side gone?”

“You must have dreamt it. Now, can I go back to work?”

**The Andrew Sisters – Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy**

“I won’t. Simple as that.” He declared, firmly, in front of the four soldiers holding him at arms-length.

“You sold pieces of a deadly weapon to the enemy, I’m afraid you don’t have much choice, Tesla.”

“I beg to differ – I gave pieces of it to every country involved in the war. Which is different. I wanted to restore peace.” He corrected.

“Of course. Well, you’re given a chance to really work to reach that goal by cracking the Enigma code.”

“Alright. I get to choose my team. Get me Helen Magnus, James Watson and Nigel Griffin.”

“You’re in no position to make demands.”

“Then shoot me. I won’t help.” The officer looked… Embarrassed. Now that was interesting.

“It’s not so much about the demand… You’re unable to grant it.”

The old guy cleared his throat.

“Where are they? Are they on the front?” He asked, suddenly panicked.

There was no way they were going through that again.

“I can’t tell you.”

“That’s a yes… Alright. Let me pack a suitcase.”

The others could achieve nothing without him anyway.

**Eminem – Survival**

His mad grin frightened Helen who took a step back.

“What would that dear Darwin have to say about this?” He asked, his voice dark and metallic.

He licked the blade of his knife, lost in the slightly bitter taste of his own blood. He had just cut himself to show her he could heal in no time, and of course he had to think of it as a macabre experiment… Helen would have too, in any other circumstances, but he looked disturbingly bestial. She did not care what Charles would think about it. She could not bring herself to shoot Nikola, not after being asked, not even after his little demonstration of… Self-harm? Power?

“Stop it, Nikola, please.”

He sunk his knife deep into his neck, brutally and with a rapidity that was neither natural nor letting her time to catch his arm. She yelped. Was she the only remaining sane member of the five? He would heal, in record time – thirty-five seconds it turned out, she counted – but Helen would never be able to forget the sight of him bleeding himself for fun.

**Tim Arisu – My style**

Helen Magnus, the composed, oh so proper Helen, mind you, was completely drunk. She was swaying on her heels. Nikola _was_ amazed that she could even stand on her own. He caught her arms and forced her to sit down in an alcove, close the emergency exit, just in case the FBI would raid the place, or he would need to make her puke.

“I want to dance!” She protested.

He observed her face. That short bob suited her, even though he couldn’t for the life of him understand why she would dye her hair dark.

“Helen, you can’t stand that awful home-brewed stuff.”

He sniffed her glass. Yeah. It was certainly ethanol mixed with juice. He cringed. Disgusting indeed.

“But you brought me here.”

Her serious face made him chuckle. She would feel so bad in the morning…

“To relax, not drown your sorrows and flirt shamelessly.”

“Are you calling me a harlot?”

He sighed. That was going to be a very long night.

**Semisonic – Closing Time**

She chuckled. That was bad. She had to sober up or people would see just how inebriated she was. Even being slightly tipsy would not do under the prohibition.

“Helen, please look where you’re going.” He asked when she tripped and almost fell.

“It’s not my fault, you’re acting weird.” She said, looking exaggeratingly offended.

“You’re not in London.”

“I know…”

Her tone surprised him, she sounded almost sober all of a sudden. Did she miss James? The sanctuary?

“Look at all these lights high up in the sky… It’s so pretty… Like fairies…”

Getting back to his hotel would be hell.

**John K. Samson – When I Write my Master’s Thesis**

He could not write when she was not working beside him, he had found. He wasn’t sure whether she stuck around to check on his English or if she felt the same. He would write a few lines then tear the page. It was all so clear in his head, but on paper? It was less… brilliant. Yet when she was working at his table in the library, she would raise her head, chuckle, and ask him if he could grasp an idea she had. Of course it would be a great idea, resonating against the walls of the library.

“I’ll have to credit you for your help.” He said one day, when he was oh so close to finish his thesis.

She blushed ever so slightly and smiled at him. “So will I, Nikola. So will I.”

**Bad Lip Reading – Seagulls! (Stop it Now)**

It was supposed to be a nice little picnic, only the five of them on the jetty in Brighton, in the early days of summer. And it was nice… until the seagulls decided to target his sandwich. Not Druitt’s or Griffin’s… No. HIS sandwich. He did love birds, would feed pigeons better than he did himself. But that was stealing. A thing he was against. They all laughed at his angry face, and that enraged him. Helen took pity on him and neatly cut her sandwich in half. The next seagull approaching was promptly electrocuted.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Only five today, as I should be preparing for a wedding party.  
> I kinda love how hard my stupid playlist makes it... It does provoke funny thoughts.

**Van Morrison – Brown eyed girl**

She had a thing for brown eyes, Helen realized, playing with Charlotte’s hair.  
She smiled when the woman smiled in her sleep. First, there had been Helena Wells, and her dark, playful eyes, her dark wit and wonderful imagination. She had certainly been the one to make her doubt of her heterosexuality. Then John. His lighter shade of brown had eclipsed the murderous darkness lurking in his hellish mind. She shuddered at the thought of him. So she laid back down on her side, closer to Charlotte, and pulled on the cover to hide her shoulders from the world, if only for a moment, until sunrise.

**Bobby Darin & Johnny Mercer – Two of a Kind **

“Oh really, Helen?” She flinched under James amused gaze.  
“Come on James, she was the one suggesting we should try it.” Nikola countered.  
“Out of scientific curiosity, of course.” She added.  
“Of course, you couldn’t be content with placing an order at the bakery, you had to destroy the kitchen.”  
Helen bit her lip.  
“At least nothing exploded.” Nikola offered, dusting off some flour residues from his jacket.  
James sighed, but couldn’t help the burst of laughter that escaped from him at the sight of what should have been Nigel’s birthday cake.  
Really, Nikola and Helen were quite the pair.

**Iggy Azalea – Fancy**

Nikola had to restrain his jaw from falling when he saw Helen that morning.  
Of course, Helen Magnus would look stunning even in rags, with mud for only make-up. Trust him, he had seen that.  
However, she had traded her professional blazer and pencil skirt for a black dress showing all the right curves. Her long curls were free, only held back for practical reasons. “Going somewhere?” He asked with a smirk.  
She was surprised to find him in the kitchen, but she smiled, batting her eyelashes at him.  
Where had she learned the art of smoky eyes, he wondered.  
“Tokyo.”  
“Not for your kung fu practice.”  
She took an apple from the fruit basket.  
“Kung fu is Chinese. And no. I’m to give a presentation at the cryptozoological symposium.” She explained.  
“So long as you’re not flying the helicopter in those heels…” He joked.  
“I’ll be flying the jet. Heels have never been a problem, thank you.” She retorted, adding an extra swing to her hips on her way out, biting in her apple.  
Right. ‘Cause she had never crashed a plane.  


**Mylène Farmer – Tu ne le dis pas**

“Hey! I was watching that!” Nikola protested, raising his bottle of Cabernet in the air when Helen switched the screen off.  
Helen raised an eyebrow.  
“Really, Nikola? Are you drinking straight from the bottle now?”  
He grimaced.  
“Trump is president, the world is going mad, we’re all going to die anyway because nobody is taking care of the planet. What is it going to change that I drink from a glass or a bottle?” He groaned.  
Helen took the bottle from him, took a sip, and sat down across his lap, her hand finding its way to the root of his hair at the back of his neck, instinctively.  
“Do you always have to be so grouchy?” She asked, kicking off her stilettoes.  
“Do you always have to ignore how the world is crumbling around us?” He retorted.  
She smiled before pecking him on the lips.  
“Around us. I believe that’s the right word.” She whispered.  
He frowned.  
“The world is crumbling _around us_ , not _between_ us. At least we’ve got each other.”  
She had him, that much was for sure.

**Edvard Grieg – Peer Gynt Suite : Dans le hall du roi de la montagne**

During the months Henry had spent preparing this surprise, building the Tesla coils from scratch and all, he had imagined Magnus’ possible reactions.  
Tears, however, were not something he had planned. However, there she was, listening to this piece of classical music she loved, flashes of lightening mirrored in her eyes. Of course, he could not know Tesla himself had offered her the same birthday gifts, a century before her teenage boy would even think of it. She hugged him tight when the flashes stopped, kissed the top of his head, and he beamed, reassured. There weren’t bad tears then.  
“You’re still grounded, young lad. Electricity is not safe to play with, you could have killed yourself.” She said, drying her tears with the back of her hand.


	4. Chapter 4

**Gaelic Storm – Beggarman**

Helen did not believe in ghosts.

Which did not keep her from shuddering when a drawer from her desk opened of its own, waking her up fully.

She had ignored the strange feeling of… Something invisible brushing against her side, putting it on her exhaustion.

She stared at the emptiness in front of her, and the room froze. Oh…

“Do you really think I keep change in my desk drawers?”

As she expected, Nigel materialized in front of her, naked as the day he was born. He had aged quite a lot since the last time she had seen him, but his cheeky smile was the same.

“You advised me to stop robbing banks.”

She nodded, taking the plaid that covered her to throw it to him.

“I did. Still, don’t you think asking me for money would be too forward?”

“You were sleeping, I didn’t wanna wake you up…”

**Jain – Mr. Johnson**

“That bastard did not even _thank me_.” Nikola whined.

“Yeah, a box of chocolate is not that expensive when you’re called Edison.” Nigel supplemented looking sideway at Helen with an amused smile.

“Why don’t you set up your own company, Nikola?”

“Helen’s right, pal. Edison won’t change his mind about alternating current.” James said.

Nigel huffed.

“Ha. You’d need help managing your expenses though.” He pointed out.

“No offense.”

“And where would I get the money?”

“What about that writer of yours?” James suggested.

“Twain? The last time I heard of him, he had not listened to me. What’s the point of asking a genius for advice if you’re still going to invest in something stupid? He’s ruined.”

“J.P Morgan?” Helen asked.

Nikola froze. God almighty, wasn’t she brilliant?

**Pixie Paris – Es Rappelt im Karton**

“Have you never been with a man?” Helen asked Nikola, one day, drawing circles on his shoulder as he was gazing at her sleepy face.

“As curious as I am, no. It has never been in my bucket-list.” He admitted, grimacing slightly at the thought.

“Do you miss frolicking with girls?”

He was somewhat afraid of the answer. Everything was perfect as it was. But it was slightly disturbing to think that Helen might not be as satisfied as he was. Her teasing smile did not really comfort him.

She shrugged.

“You exhaust me too much for that.”

“It takes a lot of energy to keep you under my spell, Dr. Magnus.” He said, grinning.

She rolled her eyes.

**The High Kings – Marie’s Wedding**

“Nigel is married!” Helen exclaimed, bursting in the living room, letter in hand.

“I thought he’d be the last of us to tie the knot.” Nikola said off-handedly, not taking his eyes off his book.

“I thought you were against this, I quote ‘patriarchal institution’.” James observed teasingly.

“That’s what I said.” Nikola answered, smirking.

“The cheeky bastard didn’t even invite us.” Helen protested.

“We could celebrate with a nice bottle.” Nikola suggested.

“I think you celebrated quite enough for one night.” James pointed out, surveying the stash of empty bottles on the coffee table.   


**Laurie Darmon – Ta voix**

“You’re not listening.”

“Mhh?”

“Helen… I’m offended. I thought magnetism would interest you.”

It wasn’t a lack of attention, really. She was always fascinated by Nikola’s extensive lectures around the fire. Still, she had worked all night to finish writing a paper. And his voice was the most magnetic thing about his speech. She was lulled by his slowly eroding accent. She was considering recording him for sleepless nights.

“My eyes are tired. But keep talking, please, it’s fascinating.”


End file.
